Cook Japanese with Tamako

Tamako Sakamoto

Description

Cook Japanese with Tamako is a collection of 54 recipes for simple yet tasty Japanese-style meals suitable for the whole family, from soups and salads that can be quickly and easily put together, meat and seafood dishes that are both hearty and comforting, and desserts that will brighten any table. Insightful short stories and heart-warming anecdotes on daily family life accompany the recipes, making this book perfect for anyone looking to go beyond typical Japanese restaurant fare to delve into the heart and soul of Japanese food and family traditions.

Sujets

• Cooking
• Japan

Informations

• Publié par: Marshall Cavendish International
• Date de parution: 10 octobre 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9789814516877
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 5 Mo

Extrait

with Tamako
Hearty Meals for the Whole Family
TAMAKO SAKAMOTO
photography by Noriko Yamaguchi
Copyright 2014 Tamako Sakamoto
All photographs by Noriko Yamaguchi except for those on pages 22 , 24 , 26 , 84 , 96 , 100 , 102 and 114 from the Sakamoto family album.
Published by Marshall Cavendish Cuisine An imprint of Marshall Cavendish International
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Request for permission should be addressed to the Publisher, Marshall Cavendish International (Asia) Private Limited, 1 New Industrial Road, Singapore 536196. Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] E-mail: [e-mail] Online bookstore: www.marshallcavendish.com/genref
Limits of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The Author and Publisher of this book have used their best efforts in preparing this book. The Publisher makes no representation or warranties with respect to the contents of this book and is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe in this book. While the Publisher has reviewed each recipe carefully, the reader may not always achieve the results desired due to variations in ingredients, cooking temperatures and individual cooking abilities. The Publisher shall in no event be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.
Other Marshall Cavendish Offices:
Marshall Cavendish Corporation. 99 White Plains Road, Tarrytown NY 10591-9001, USA Marshall Cavendish International (Thailand) Co Ltd. 253 Asoke, 12th Flr, Sukhumvit 21 Road, Klongtoey Nua, Wattana, Bangkok 10110, Thailand Marshall Cavendish (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Times Subang, Lot 46, Subang Hi-Tech Industrial Park, Batu Tiga, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
Marshall Cavendish is a trademark of Times Publishing Limited
National Library Board, Singapore Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Sakamoto, Tamako. Cook Japanese with Tamako : hearty meals for the whole family / Tamako Sakamoto. - Singapore : Marshall Cavendish Cuisine, 2013. pages cm ISBN : 978-981-4516-11-2 (paperback) eISBN: 978 981 4516 87 7
1. Cooking, Japanese. 2. Sakamoto, Tamako - Family. 3. Women journalists - Family relationships - Japan. 4. Families - Japan. I. Title.
TX724.5.J3 641.5952 -- dc23 OCN857708916
Printed in Singapore by KWF Printing Pte Ltd
I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth.
I Corinthians 3:6

Introduction
A Growing Family
Big Bowls of Mother s Love
Shiratama Secrets and Childhood Memories
Affordable Feasts and Fuel for Footballers
Basic Recipes
Glossary
Recipe Index
Acknowledgements

9
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40
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126
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136

What comes to mind when you think of Japanese food? Neatly placed jewel-like sushi, thin, almost transparent slices of beef for shabu-shabu or crispy, deep-fried tempura, beautifully arranged on a plate?
While it is true that the Japanese have long enjoyed such traditional food, you will discover, in this book, that Japanese mothers like myself have a much larger repertory of home-style dishes made with fresh, seasonal ingredients. We also enjoy foods from other countries, using native Japanese produce as necessary. On any family dining table, you are also bound to find dishes with roots from other countries along with traditional Japanese dishes.
This book contains the articles and recipes that have appeared in my column, Taste of Home , which started in 2006, in The Daily Yomiuri (now named The Japan News ), an English newspaper published by The Yomiuri Shimbun . The four chapters in the book are arranged chronologically, featuring recipes from the first four years of the column. Since my four children often feature in the articles, you will be able to trace their growth through the chapters.
I am not a professional chef, but I am a mother in a family of six. Most of the recipes in this book are ones I learnt from my mother and grandmothers or ideas I got from my friends. Some are my original recipes and

some are well known traditional dishes that Japanese mothers often prepare. In essence, these recipes can be likened to comfortable cotton T-shirts rather than kimonos made of silk.
After I left my full-time job to stay home and take care of my growing family, I constantly felt that these incredibly busy days caring for my young children would last forever. The laundry piled up, the bags of groceries were quickly consumed, and the meals I spent hours preparing disappeared within minutes. But it was while I was raising my children that the recipes in this book and the stories that go with them were born.
I don t keep a diary or maintain a blog to keep a record of what goes on in my life, so it was not until I reread my old manuscripts to publish this book that I realized the days I felt would never end were actually changing all the time. A family is in constant transformation. As my children grow up and leave home, the amount of food I prepare will gradually be reduced. The days of struggling to prepare incredible amounts of food will not last for the rest of my life. So, I ll enjoy these days of cooking for great appetites and be thankful for the joy that we are able to share around the table.
I am delighted that you have found this book and I hope you will enjoy preparing these dishes with a Japanese taste of home.
Tamako Sakamoto
9

A cabbage dish fit for surprise guests 12
Simmered Layered Cabbage
Crisp mizuna, perfect for salad 14
Mizuna and Tofu Salad
Trapped in the lure of asari clams 16
Asari and Celery Soup with a Twist
Dressing up plain tuna as tasty toro 18
Tuna and Avocado Donburi
A vegetable dish for your next barbecue 20
Vegetables in Foil
Nutritious summer veggies for hungry kids 22
Winter Melon Soup with Chicken
The perfect bento for sports day 24
Tonkatsu
Leeks,wonderful with olive oil and ponzu sauce 26
Leeks with Olive Oil and Ponzu Sauce
Pumpkin dessert for a Halloween party 28
Pumpkin Pudding
Irresistible stuffed green bell peppers 30
Stuffed Green Bell Peppers
A great recipe from a school lunch menu 32
Kimchi Fried Rice
Magical pumpkin, a versatile vegetable 34
Pumpkin Balls
Japanese mayonnaise, the key to good potato salad 36
Potato Salad
Handy hashiyasume for a special occasion 38
Marinated Salmon with Cucumber Dressing
I cook for six as the minimum number every day. The headcount includes my husband, three boys and a girl. The children, aged six through 13, are always hungry. In the morning, I pack lunch in a bento box for one of my sons and prepare breakfast for my other family members who leave home one after another.
The children head straight to the kitchen when they come home. As they are all involved in sports activities, they spend most of their time training or expecting some food at home. Even my youngest son, who just started elementary school this spring says he wants to eat some real food instead of sweet snacks before dinner.
I also make a dinner box twice a week, which my 10-year-old daughter takes to her cram school. For my husband who comes home late at night without having eaten anything since lunch, I try to prepare balanced dishes. My parents also join us from time to time.
Thanks to these daily tasks, it does not matter to me if my children bring friends home and there are additional kids at our dinner table, or if friends drop by unannounced, since I usually prepare a lot

of food to make sure that everybody gets enough. We enjoy sitting around the big family table and my children seem happy to share their dinner with visitors, although they usually fight to make sure they get a large portion for themselves!
Here is a good recipe to try especially when you have unexpected visitors dropping by. It is a simmered dish of cabbage leaves layered with minced meat, which I learnt from a chef I know. It is easy to cook compared to rolled cabbage which uses similar ingredients. With this dish, you do not have to worry about the exact number of guests as you can serve the dish by cutting it into wedges as you would a cake.
Although it is a Western-style dish, I make it a rule to add a tablespoon of soy sauce to the stock to give it a touch of extra flavour. This dish goes well served either with bread or rice.
I usually use 900 g (2 lb) of minced meat and 1 heads of cabbage to cook enough for a hungry crowd. Any leftovers can be cut up and stored in the freezer with a little of the soup-although in my experience, there are usually hardly any leftovers!
12
Simmered Layered Cabbage
Serves 6-8

1 medium cabbages
60 g (2 oz) panko breadcrumbs
120 ml ( cup) milk
1 onion
900 g (2 lb) minced pork and beef mixture
1 egg
1 tsp salt
ground black pepper
3 bouillon cubes
1 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce
600 ml (2 cups) hot water
2-3 bay leaves
5 slices bacon, roughly chopped
herbes de Provence or other herbs, optional

1. Carve out the hard core of each cabbage and discard. Peel the cabbage leaves carefully and parboil for 2-3 minutes or until pliable. Drain, then slice off the hard veins. Soak the panko in the milk. Peel and mince the onion. In a bowl, mix the minced meat with the onion, panko and egg. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
2. Spread one third of the cabbage leaves flat in a flat-bottom pot. I usually use an oval pot measuring 27 x 22 cm (10 x 8 inches). Place half the meat mixture on top of the cabbage leaves and spread out evenly. Smooth the surface. Repeat the process to make cabbage and meat layers, ending with a layer of cabbage. Press down with your hands to compact the layers and smooth the surface.
3. Add the bouillon cubes and soy sauce to the 600 ml (2 cups) hot water. Pour the liquid over the layers of cabbage. Place the bay l